Forever In Peace May She Wave

July 2, 2013

I beleive in working towards peace. Always.
I believe in the pursuit of a life filled with liberty and justice for all.
I am grateful for the sacrifices that members of the American armed forces have made in service to my country.
I think war is awful.
I do not think it can always be avoided.
I am probably what is called “a damn moderate.”
I tend to see both sides of an issue. I tend to feel bad for everyone (another reason why I am not good as a sports fan. That team that lost? Those are someones babies!)
(This both drives Sweet Man crazy, and endures me to him a bit. I think.)

I am grateful to have been born into this country.
Everytime I travel around it I am blow away by both it’s size and how regional things still are. Even in the year 2013, Dr. Pepper is not a staple beverage everywhere. Some of us say Coke and some of us say Soda and some of say Pop.
I think the American people are amazing.
I think how we came to be a nation is inspiring and some of it is terribly sad.
Sometimes decisions made by our government leaders (on all sides of the aisle) makes me want to pull my hair out.Or move to remote forign location where there is no internet.
(But then I wouldn’t have you, and that would not be good. At all.)
I think I can love my country and want it to do better. (Sometimes a lot better even.)
I do not think that these two things – my love and my critisim- have to be mutually exclusive.
So this why I have to balance the red, white, and blue explosion on my porch with a little peace talk on the freshly hung chalkboard.
They are both the truth.

I heard something on the NPR today about Nelson Mandela. About how he was always much more interested in talking about what people have in common, than about what seperates them.

They also talked about how his goal was growth and transformation.

You know I am a sucker for those two words.

They seriously make me swoon.

I don’t know about you, but I think if we as a country could just focus on the things that we all love- like extra huge rosettes and bunting- we would all get along so much better. Don’t you think?

That is why I am doing my part to unify our country once again through excessive holiday decorating.

It all begain when I cleaned out the hall closet and I found years worth of $1 store decorations that I had never used. Mostly because we are rarely home for the 4th.

And because I forget that I bought them.

And because it is usually so blasted hot that I hate to spend any extra time outdoors doing things like hanging bunting.

Apparently these rosette/fans came from Target (I only know this because I saw them on Sarah’s blog and remembered that I had some myself) but they were flimsy as all get-out. So I rustled around in my old banner making supplies and found some die-cut shapes that I could add to help stablize them (along with a healthy amount of hot glue.)

I really wanted to incorperate the Patchwork Wreath (Chapter 21 in A Homemade Year)I made earlier this summer, so I attached this fan to the middle of it. I think the pinks and the aquas help to soften the bright reds and deep navys traditionally associated with decorations for the 4th.

And then I added my wish for peace.
Because that is what I want for this land that I love.